Solo Cory Show Tomorrow, Cory's Special Music News

Hey Nerds! It’s been a while since I’ve played solo, and I’m going to break the seal this Wednesday, July 30th at Box Awesome. It’ll be a fun time, for sure. I mean it! There will be new songs, instead of the same old BS you usually hear from me. So, new BS I guess.

If you have any questions, or are nervous about purchasing alcohol, please contact me. I hope to see you there!

Because of my well-received and critically-acclaimed graduation and subsequent job search, my music projects have been on the back burner. Ideally, I would have loved to release another full-length solo record in the first half of 2008, but… I didn’t. Not that people are gathering and clamoring in front of my house, but it’s good to be productive. And the process of making a “solo” record is fun. But rest assured I’m going to get right on it once I get a job secured, and I’ll even be recording it myself! REALLY!

However, this Wednesday, July 30th at Box Awesome, I’m playing a solo show with SKIRT from Minneapolis and a Lincoln band called Harmonic Dissidents. I haven’t played a solo show in a while, so I’m excited; I’ll be able to present at least 2 or 3 new songs, possibly 4. I would love to have half a set of brand new songs. It is the late show, so, 9 or 9:30.

The Sleepover; we lost our drummer Brock in a warehouse explosion*, so for the past few months, we’ve been trying to scare up a new drummer. We did have Howie fill in for us in Omaha at The Slowdown which was gobs of fun, and we had the pleasure of playing with The Botticellis and Before The Toast And Tea. But since then, it’s been fairly quiet. We haven’t played any other shows, but we have practiced a few times with one dude who seems to catch on very quickly. He’s also a nice dude, and has an air-conditioned basement. We think it’ll probably work out with him, but we’ll know for sure after the next couple of practices. It’s been kind of cruddy because we can’t really implement any new songs right now, because we’ve got to teach all of the current songs to the new drummer. But that’s no one’s fault, of course. And with any luck, we’ll start recording relatively soon, maybe with Howie on drums and/or recording?

Speaking of the Botticellis, here’s what I’ve been listening to:

The Botticellis, “Old Home Movies”. A shiny, dreamy, 60’s surf-pop record with gorgeous melodies. If you like pretty songs, you should listen to this record.

The Hold Steady, “Stay Positive”. I expected to absolutely love this record right away, so when I didn’t absolutely love it right away, I was a little bit bummed. BUT THEN, the same thing happened as when I bought “Boys and Girls in America”. I just instinctively wanted to keep listening to it because it was a fun record. AND THEN, I loved it. And I love it. Howie and I talked about how Nada Surf records are like this as well. You buy the record and upon first listen, you think, “Man, this is just your typical Nada Surf.” And then after a few more listens, you realize that it’s awesome. “Stay Positive” is awesome. “GET HAMMERED!” YEAH! GET HAMMERED! And I mean that sincerely. “Double whiskey, Coke (no ice)!”

Vampire Weekend, “Vampire Weekend”. I’ve been in love with this record for months now, so I’ll keep it short; nothing completely groundbreaking, but this is a refreshing, perfect pop record. If you like great, concise pop records with absolutely no filler, get this record. DO IT.

Darth Crabs per Cookies, “Narrow Stairs”. I bought this record and liked it all right on the first couple of listens, and now I like it way more. Not as good as “Plans,” I don’t think, but I am going to keep listening before I make any rash judgment calls.

No Age, “Weirdo Rippers”. Man, if there’s a record that was hard for me to get into, it’s this one. It’s VERY lo-fi and raw, noisy, and the songs have weird structures. Not a pop record, really. It has pop elements, but if you played this record for your family at Thanksgiving, they might become confused/annoyed/upset/angry/insecure. It’s a strange, strange record. I’ve heard that their newer record, “Nouns,” is more accessible.

I WANT to buy The Cool Kids’ “Bake Sale EP,” but I can’t find it anywhere.